Born in Venice in 1936 to a Muranese family, Elio Raffaeli lived and studied on the island of Murano, the glass-blowing capital of Venice. In his early teen years, Raffaeli was taught the fundamental secrets of the magical art of Murano.

Raffaeli worked for several years as a journeyman at the Seguso-Dalla Venezia factory and later as first assistant, maturing as a person and glassblower. The misfortunes of the Seguso-Dalla Venezia factory forced him to move to another prestigious company, Salviati. Here Raffaeli honed his skills as a glass master, perfecting both the techniques of blowing delicate glass pieces and those of creating solid glass sculptures. In 1966 he moved to a new factory, Briati, where he was hired as a master and assigned a square. Here he began to interpret the drawings of the famous Flavio Poli with balanced precision. Raffaeli subsequently went to work with Livio Seguso, one of the great sculptors of the 20th century, where he forged a working relationship and friendship with the young Roberto Cammozzo.